Report: New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie allows Tesla to sell direct to consumers
Tesla Motors scored well recently in their current battle of challenging the classic automobile dealership hierarchy by selling directly to consumers, rather than setting up a dealership network to basically cut out the middle men.
But because dealerships have such a strong presence and lots of lobbyists, many states passed legislation, banning the sale of Tesla Motors to protect the dealership lobbies. But some states have reversed their ban and one of those recent states was New Jersey.
Earlier this week, Gov. Chris Christie signed a bill reauthorizing Tesla Motors’ chances of establishing a total of four direct-sale stores with at least one service center. The allowance of selling direct-to-customers was fronted by the New Jersey Coalition of Automotive Retailers.
I said last yr that if NJ Legislature changed the law so @TeslaMotors could sell in NJ, I would sign it. That’s exactly what I’ve done today
— Governor Christie (@GovChristie) March 18, 2015
Tesla has been clashing with traditional dealership networks for quite some time by challenging their structure. Tesla CEO Elon Musk even called out the practice, critcizing dealers for up-selling customers to items they don’t need or steering them towards more expensive cars for greater profits.
To this day, Tesla sales are still banned in Virginia, Texas, Arizona, and Michigan.
Source: CNET